Author
Topic: 1979 Moto Guzzi V50 II Cafe (Read 186168 times)

So I started looking for a Guzzi last year. Ive always had a weakness for Italian machines, especially if there's a V-twin involved. I was initially hoping to find a LeMans, but every one I found that was in fair condition was out of my price range. A couple of Monza's and other V50's cropped up every now and again, but I wasn't sold.

Then I saw a post on BikeExif on Axel Budde's LeMans Racer, http://www.bikeexif.com/moto-guzzi-3 and that for me was the tipping point. I couldn't afford a LeMans, but I could make a small block Guzzi into something. I was determined.

I had seen a Monza for around $800, but the crank wasn't good. The rest of the bike seemed ok. I figured, I could do worse so went to see if the guy still had it. He had just sold it. Anyways, I eventually found a MKII, not the best variant, but the bike looked in good order. It wasn't running, but all the signs were there that it was ok, and importantly, it wasn't butchered. So, in late August, the guy trailered the bike onto my drive.

Man, I couldn't resist. I wanted to get the bike running, ride it a bit, and make my decisions from there. But, I would say to myself, "Ok, I'm just going to take this apart, check it, and then put it back. etc. Come Saturday, and well, I just went too far. "Screw it, I'm taking this thing apart."

I'm really glad I did, because, had I run it, I would have trashed the rear drive. It had been "serviced" by someone who clearly didn't have a clue. This was my green light to drop the "...I'm gonna get the bike on the road first..." idea, and make it "...Im going to have to check everything and fix it..." idea.

So I opened up the motor. You always hope its going to be perfect right? Theres always that optimsitic, "Wow I found a real winner here!" thing going on in your head. But I was to be dissapointed. :-/

1. One of the pistons had siezed in the barrel. Not a heat sieze, - water had gotten in there (bike stood for a couple of years), and it had rusted. Luckily for me the inside of the cylinder is ok.2. So - piston rings rubbish3. Main bearings shot4. Big End bearings shot5. Clutch plate sitting in a sea of oil due to seal failure.

Managed to get everything I needed. Big Ends and Main bearings - totalling around $400 for the 8 halves! Hey you cant cry over this stuff! Its part of the risk you take, but it can still hurt.

Big End Bearings: (a small fortune)

- Decided that the lack of hp on the 500cc unit could do with some encouragement by gas flowing the heads and skimimg, amongst some other mods I'm going to do.

- Also had the crank balanced.

- I'm still waiting for the heads to come back, due to the general December slowdown.

Bloody brilliant.I can see why this http://www.bikeexif.com/moto-guzzi-3 tipped the scales!I'll be following your build for sure.The other bike in your workshop ........ can you tell me more about the tank on it? looks rad.

As for the tank on the other bike, I was originally going for a very industrial look on the bike in general. A good friend of mine suggested using a fire extinguisher as the tank. :-) I really liked the idea, and so I mocked up a light-weight version of the extinguisher he brought to my house. After a while I decided to refine the basic cylinder shape a bit and add a curve to the top. So what we've got now is this:

I use a technique whereby I pre mould thick card pieces which, I then wood glue together. This gives me a good symetrical shape. I then fibreglass over, and smooth. A mould is then made and I produce the part from that mould.

I thought it was a fire extinguisher! It's something that has crossed my mind as a fuel cell, and it's great to see it actually done. How did you fabricate the channel underneath for the top tube? Or did you weld in a channel cut out of an old tank?Thanks for the inspiration, I've a friend who is always salvaging old extinguishers to make stuff out of.

Done exactly the same as the top - fibreglass over the card. Makes up a very strong shape. The channel fits snugly on the frame, with a high density foam layer

cushioning it. There's a tab at the base where the seat starts where it bolts into the frame.

Using "actual" extinguishers are cool conceptually, if that's the thing you're after, but they're damn heavy, and you don't really want that weight up there, and that's why I don't think its a good idea...

So this bike was designed in 1974. The motor is a stressed unit that makes up the rigity of the motorcycle. Sound familiar? Design wise, pretty forward thinking for the time.

So, prioritising what needed to be done, I figured at this point, with the motor being worked on, my next step would be to look at the swingarm and rear drive hub.

As I started loosening the hub bolts, oil started flowing out of the bolt holes! Basically, a bolt had come loose in there and pretty much unleashed mayhem, tearing up some of the aluminium casing internally. Not only that, someone had "fixed" it all up. No shim spacers, no gaskets, I was convinced that the crown and pinion wheels were not lined up properly. Thankfully it looked like the bike hadn't run since the "repair". Later when I tested the unit with Engineers Marking Blue, my fears were confirmed. The dumbass who worked on the bike had just tossed the shims away! WTF!?

This is another unit I got from the guy I bought the bike from. (complete with the necessary shims this time)